CLAUSE H.46 – CONFERENCE MANAGEMENT
The Contractor agrees that:
(a) The contractor shall ensure that contractor-sponsored conferences, and contractor participation in DOE conferences sponsored by a Departmental Element, reflect the DOE/NNSA’s commitment to fiscal responsibility, appropriate stewardship of taxpayer funds and support the mission of DOE/NNSA as well as other sponsors of work. In addition, the contractor shall ensure its sponsored conferences do not include any activities that create the appearance of taxpayer funds being used in a questionable manner.
(b) For the purposes of this clause, “conference” is first defined by the Federal Travel Regulation (FTR) as “[a] meeting, retreat, seminar, symposium, or event that involves attendee travel. The term ‘conference’ also applies to training activities that are considered to be conferences under 5 C.F.R 410.404.” Additionally, the Department’s conference activity reporting guideline expands the FTR conference definition to disregard attendee travel as a determining factor, i.e., reporting can be required without the existence of attendee travel.
(c) Contractor-sponsored conferences include those events that meet the Department’s expanded conference definition, and a DOE contractor holds the role of primary decision-maker for key planning items such as conference theme, agenda, location/venue, dates, and conference participation.
(d) Merely providing the contractor’s facility space for a conference, or contractor staff participating in a conference, or procuring conference booth space, giving a speech, or serving as an honorary chairperson does not connote contractor sponsorship.
(e) The contactor will provide information on conferences they plan to sponsor, when expected costs exceed $100,000 in net costs to the Department, in the Department’s Conference Management Tool (CMT), including:
(1) Conference title, description, and date;
(2) Location and venue;
(3) Description of any unusual expenses (e.g., promotional items);
(4) Description of contracting procedures used (e.g., competition for space/support);
(5) Costs for space, food/beverages, audio visual, travel/per diem, attendee registration costs
(6) Number of attendees
(f) The contractor will not expend funds on the proposed contractor-sponsored conferences with expenditures estimated to exceed $100,000 until notified of approval by the contracting officer and approved by the corresponding federal executive oversight entity.
(g) For DOE-sponsored conferences (i.e., sponsored by a Departmental Element), the contractor will not expend funds on the proposed conference that exceeds $100,000 in net estimated DOE cost, until it is approved in the CMT by the management of the Departmental Element sponsoring the conference,
(1) DOE-sponsored conferences include events that meet the Department’s expanded conference definition, and a Departmental Element holds the role of primary decisionmaker for key planning items such as conference theme, agenda, location/venue, dates and conference participation.
(2) Merely providing Federal facility space for a conference, or Federal staff participating in a conference, or procuring conference booth space, giving a speech, or serving as an honorary chairperson does not connote DOE sponsorship.
(3) The contractor will provide cost and attendance information on their participation in all DOE- sponsored conferences in the DOE Conference Management Tool.
(h) For conferences sponsored by a non-DOE external entity, the contractor shall develop and implement a process to ensure costs related to such conferences are tracked, allowable, allocable, reasonable, and further the mission of DOE/NNSA.
(i) Contractors are not required to enter participation or cost information on conferences sponsored by a non- DOE external entity in DOE’S Conference Management Tool.